CHENNAI: Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul (56), a native of Srinagar, who has assumed office as the 46th Chief Justice of Madras High Court, has an illustrious lineage to his credit.
He hails from the distinguished Dattareya Kauls of Srinagar, whose ancestry has reliably been traced back to over 500 years. One of his early ancestors - Swami Jageshwar Nath Kaul - was the custodian of the Ganpatiar temple in Srinagar, sometime in early 15th century. Later, in the 17th century, the Mughal emperor Jehangir appointed one of his descendants Pandit Shanker Kaul as one of his Royal officials. In the 19th century, one of his ancestors Pandit Lal Kaul was a minister at the court of Kabul, who later formed an alliance with Sher-e-Punjab Maharaja Ranjith Singh. Pandit Kaul was Commander of the Rawalpindi Brigade of the Sikh Army, which enjoyed great victories in several battles and played a pivotal role in Maharaja Ranjith Singh’s annexation of Kashmir in 1819.
Several of his other ancestors too have an equally illustrious career. His great-great grandfather Raja Suraj Kishan Kaul was the revenue minister in the Regency Council and adorned the Legislative Council for the Punjab province and his son Sir Daya Kishan Kaul was hailed as a great diplomat and statesman and functioned as the finance minister in Jammu& Kashmir, Alwar and Patiala. His grandfather Raja Upinder Kishan Kaul also enjoyed a distinguished career in public service. His brother Neeraj Kishan Kaul was also a judge of Delhi HC, when he worked as a judge in the same High Court in 2001. It is a rare incident when two brothers adorned the bench of one HC at the same time.